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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28313937">Within reach</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Parkerkirk/pseuds/Parkerkirk'>Parkerkirk</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Marauders Era (Harry Potter)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 16:01:31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,116</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28313937</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Parkerkirk/pseuds/Parkerkirk</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>For the last few weeks of summer, James Potter would be living in the Evans household. Petunia sees a snitch for the first time. James challenges her to try and catch it.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>James Potter &amp; Lily Evans Potter</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Within reach</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is based on a TikTok I did (clueless_sarah) of Petunia being invited to Harry and Ginny's home for Christmas. She proceeds to give each family members gifts. She gives James Sirius Potter a snitch telling him the story of how she took it from his grandfather James Potter. </p><p>So this the story of Petunia taking and keeping the snitch for herself.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The television droned in the living room, Mr Evans watching it avidly sat in the only armchair available in the small tidy living room.</p><p>Perched on the edge of the sofa next to the man was Petunia. Her brows furrowed and her neck craning to try and look round the corner into the kitchen where she could hear giggles and murmurs and something that sounded like the flutter of wings.</p><p>Not being successful in seeing or hearing what was happening in the kitchen, she stood up from the sofa smoothing down her dress and moving a piece of her short hair behind her ear.</p><p>She rounded into the kitchen, seeing Lily quickly place both hands on the boy's chest in front of her, pushing him away. The boy stumbled back from her confused running a hand through his thick black unruly hair and turning to look at what caused the interruption. An "oh" forming on his face as he realised who had disturbed there moment, then it was quickly replaced with a smirk. His head spun around again to give a quick cheeky wink to the flaming redhead girl leaning against the counter, her cheeks flushed pink.</p><p> Petunia's attention was not on the giggling couple who had been hiding through the house the past week. Her eyes caught a glimmer of gold as something whooshed in the corner of her eyesight. She spun towards it, catching sight of a golden ball with wings fluttering teasingly in front of her. </p><p>"Go on," said the deep amused voice of the boy with insanely mused up hair as he pushed his silver rounded glasses up his nose.</p><p>Petunia eyed him cautiously, "go on what?" She replied stiffly. </p><p>"Catch it" the boy innocently beamed. </p><p>She turned back to look at the fluttering golden ball just in arms reach. She began to stretch an arm towards it, and it quickly shot passed her. Her eyes rapidly following it and suddenly her vision obscured by an arm shooting in front of her face and grasping the ball in their hand. </p><p>"Stop showing off James" murmured Lily smirking behind the boy as he threw his hand up into the hair holding the ball which now has no wings. </p><p>"Admit it, you love it, Evans" replied James smirking back. "Don't worry. Not many people can catch the snitch Tuney-"</p><p>"My name's Petunia" Petunia gritted out, feeling like she had been set up to fail. </p><p>"Anywho, I can teach you how to -" James trailed off as Lily tugged the sleeve of his jumper. </p><p>"We really need to start getting ready to leave James. Otherwise, we will miss the showing," Lily said. "Leave the snitch behind in my room too!" She shouted, glancing over her shoulder as she moved out of the kitchen. </p><p>James blew out a dramatic sigh shrugging his shoulders, nodded to Petunia and moved to get ready. </p><p>Petunia headed back into the living, perching on the end of the white leather sofa. Her father sat in his chair still, non the wiser what had occurred engrossed in his documentary. </p><p>She heard James and Lily make there way down the stairs giggling again and the sounds of donning shoes and coats and then the click of the door shutting behind them. </p><p>Petunia got up from the sofa again, making her way up the stairs to Lily's room. </p><p>The room didn't look much different than it usually did. A tidy neutral painted room but with touches of parchment, school jumpers and brightly coloured sweet boxes strewn across a desk and the floor. </p><p>On the bedside table, she saw it. She quickly moved across the room, plucking the ball up in her long bony fingers. </p><p>Quickly making her way to her room she closed the door behind her. Sitting on the floor with her back against the side of her bed, she held the snitch out in her palm, the metal slightly warm against her skin. </p><p>She stared at it waiting for the wings to sprout out and for it fly so she could practice catching it. She would show James... She could and would catch it! </p><p>After spending a minute watching it closely and having no joy, she decided to throw it up into the air. "Maybe that would activate it" she pondered. </p><p>The tiny golden ball shot up in the air and proceeded to plummet to the ground and teasingly roll away from her.</p><p>She quickly got up onto her knees, reaching towards the ball and examining it, seeing it still didn't have wings, and didn't have a scratch or dent on it from its fall. </p><p>She began to throw the ball higher, each time resulting in the same disappointing thud to the ground.</p><p>She shook it, spoke to it, tried passwords, and she stroked it. No matter what she did, the wings would not appear. </p><p>As the ball thud to the ground for the tenth time frustrated tears beginning to well in her eyes, her father's irate voice shouted from the living room. </p><p>"Will you stop that racket Petunia!!" He bellowed.</p><p>"Sorry father!!" She shouted back.

 Letting out a sorrowed grunt and stomping over to the ball on the ground, she angrily plucked the ball up and shoved it into the dark depths of the back of her desk draw, out of sight and reach. </p><p>She would not spend her summer being humiliated by that boy just because he had talents she did not.</p><p>She took a deep breath in and then blew it out slowly and harshly and left the room to sit with her father once more. </p><p>Later she heard James talking to Lily hurriedly as they set the table for dinner. </p><p>"I don't understand. It was on your bedside table!" James moaned, a hand gripping his hair. </p><p>"The window was open James, it must have flown out, I'm sorry. I'm sure we will find you another one" Lily replied apologetically, trying to soothe the loss. </p><p>"It's never happened before though, I don't -" James stopped as Lily held up a hand.</p><p>" James. It's just a snitch, and there's plenty more out there. Let's enjoy the rest of the summer, yeah?" Lily interrupted his ongoing monologue, placing a hand on his shoulder. </p><p>James looked lovingly down into Lily's eyes, a smile forming on his face as he began to nod, taking her hand in his. </p><p>"Yeah.. yeah. Your right, it's just a snitch, not the end of the world." </p><p>The snitch lay forgotten in the desk draw for years, slowly becoming cold, motionless but that spark laying just within reach.</p><p>Just like Petunia as she began to grow through the years. Slowly becoming cold, emotionless but underneath her spark lay within reach.</p>
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